Kristi Noem spent thousands on horse rental, hair and makeup for DHS ads, invoices show

“This looks like waste, fraud, and abuse to me,” Vermont’s Sen. Peter Welch said of the Department of Homeland Security’s ad spending.

U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem addresses the press on a property near the Rio Grande River on Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026, in Brownsville, Texas. (AP Photo/Gabriel V. Cardenas)